Four explosions rocked the London subway and tore open a packed double-decker bus during the morning rush hour this day, Thursday, July 7, 2005. The deadly explosive terrorists' attacks injured more than 700 people left more than 40 dead. What happened last week should prompt people to be more alert and report suspicious acts. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff raised the alert level for the nation's mass transit systems to orange, or high, in response to the deadly bombings on London's transit. Elsa Lee, CEO and founder of Advantage SCI, based in El Segundo, Calif., offers suggestions on how respond to suspicious behavior.
Formulate aggressive proactive strategies and strong security programs that are well documented, well rehearsed and well coordinated across all sectors -- the first responder community, businesses and the public.
Be aware of your surroundings and suspicious people. Suspicious people covertly photographing metro railway and trains have been observed and reported in major cities across the nation -- from Los Angeles to New York -- by a few citizens who happened to be observant and perceptive when these activities were taking place.
Everyone needs to work together. Metro rail passengers need to be sharply attuned to what is happening around them. If they see, feel or know that something is out of place, out of the norm or simply strange in that moment of time, they need to act on it.
Suspicious activity should be reported immediately. Terrorist attacks require planning and preparing before an attack is carried out. It will be difficult to detect terrorist activities on the day of the attack in time to stop it. If terrorist activities are not detected in the prepping stages, the best you can hope for is that someone will detect a package or backpack left unattended or placed at the target location on the day of the attack.